Spilsby cafe owners to walk 147-mile Viking Way for charity

STEP ON IT: Wayne and Lesley Bourne from the Cornhill Cafe in Spilsby will be walking the 147-mile Viking Way in just four days next month. They will be joined on the final leg by daughter Lindsay Vaughan and granddaughter Alisha Oliver. (Picture Sarah Baker)

A COUPLE from Spilsby are preparing for a 147-mile trip along the Viking Way, all in aid of charity.

Lesley and Wayne Bourne, who own the Cornhill Cafe, will start their four-day challenge on July 4 which will raise money for Cancer Research UK and When You Wish Upon A Star.

The pair will be walking for about 11 hours each day, a total of 36 miles, before returning back to Spilsby each night for all-important leg massages.

Wayne said: “We did look at staying over each night but it would have been expensive and Sasha at Simply Beautiful has agreed to come and give us a massage each day. She’s been coming once a week through our training and if it wasn’t for her we would be struggling a bit. She’s been a big help.

“We chose the charities because we have done a few bits for them both before. Cancer affects a lot of people and we both have personal reasons for wanting to support the charity.

“Training is going really well, we are doing about 70 miles a week at the moment and started training just after Christmas.

“Everyone says how flat Lincolnshire is but they haven’t been up this end. From the Humber down it’s very up and down. Most of it is across fields and public footpaths.”

As part of their training, Lesley and Wayne have tried to walk different sections of the Viking Way each Sunday so they have no surprises along the route.

The walk begins at Barton-upon-Humber, making its way across the Lincolnshire Wolds, incorporating Woodhall Spa and Lincoln before heading down towards the finish at Oakham near the banks of Rutland Water.

The pair will be joined on the last day of their journey by Lesley’s daughter Lindsay Vaughan and for the final two miles by granddaughter Alisha Oliver, aged nine.

So far, fundraising has reached around £1,200 with Cornhill Cafe customers helping their efforts.

The couple are also grateful to Charlie Blades at Sainsbury’s in Spilsby who has helped them to arrange a collection and bag pack in store, helping to raise £500. Sainsbury’s is also sponsoring the food and drink for their trip.

Along the way, Alan and Michelle Yost will be following Lesley and Wayne round the route by car, bringing their supplies as well as taking them back to Spilsby each night.